Mackerel

I remember watching a program in the UK, years ago, very similar story to this. The victims were young black women mainly, raped by black gang members. The program showed interviews with guys that made comments like, 'It's better if they say no' and 'We like them to struggle, it's more fun'. Interestingly, the gang-rapists used condoms most of the time. Some said it was to protect themselves, some used them to avoid leaving evidence.

Sickening.

The police in Pattaya were assisted recently by 25 ' foreign volunteers ' who would strike up conversation with girls on the beach road. Once the topic turned to sex and the couple moved on to some hotel, the Thai cops would  arrest the girl.

Not for me to judge what the girls or the police do. But I don't see the motivation for these foreign dogs. Maybe they're under some illusion they're doing some good.

I have a savings account with Bangkok Bank and opted to have the debit card also. In addition to JB's post I'd add that you can also use the card abroad to take cash from most ATM's.

I don't use the card here to pay for goods or bills as I worry that the chance of fraud is quite high. What would happen if a farang lost money through debit card use, what would the bank do etc...

I had a converation with a german tonight who assures me any farang can own , outright , upto 1 rai of land .Is this correct ?

Perhaps the German tells everyone this as he's looking to 'sell' a Rai to anyone that swallows the tale. It's cheap because blah, blah, blah...

Just another bullshit merchant propping up the bar

These disruptions are par for the course. When Air Force One comes to town all the lower forms of life like you and I end up at the end of the queue, there's no delaying VIP's.

Happened to me years ago, in the USA. Presidential visit had the airport closed for 3 or 4 hours as he turned up, held a baby and took off. Even though everyone knew about the visit back then, there was still a lot of hassle for a 10 minute photo op.  

I had a look around the Penthouse last year with a mate. We saw the std rooms and the top floor room, which had a small stage with chrome poles, jacuzzi, maybe 2 and swing chairs. Lots of toys about the place.

Inside is strange, I thought...pebbles on the walls and a murky feel to the place. There was no lift, just a spiral staircase to get to the top and I was pizzed too much also:-)

When we were negotiating the price for a 2 week stay, 2 gay fella's went upstairs and that put a new slant on how I looked at the sex toys and the swing chairs. I then realised the location is just round the corner from 'Boys Town' and we just left, thinking it was a gay joint. Of course, it's not. There's a gogo bar downstairs. It's an expensive place, in comparison to other hotels at the same price, but a very odd place too. Wasn't my cup of tea.

Reasonable but either no battery or crap battery

As the user of one of Liberta's laptops, ###### is spot on with that comment. Any idea where I can get a decent replacement battery?

Questions, questions, questions....

Some will allow, some won't / can't.

I had a friend who needed this and he found most places would as long as the staff knew how to include him on the network.

I've also seen signs in internet places that offer lower rates, if you use your laptop.

The foreign crap that washes up on the shores of Thailand and SEA can be surprising, astonishing even.

I remember in Cambodia meeting some of the worst examples of expat. Most seemed to hold English teaching jobs, which alarmed me.

Yes, some fools out there. Yes, some bullshit. But some very good people out there too, I'm happy to say.

Leaflet for an all night party Koh Samet...

'From Dusk 'till Down'

Not a mistake, but funny anyway - Bar in Jomtien...

'Drunks and Dare-a-licks'

If you're the common denominator in all these disappointing liaisons, what does that tell you?

What kind of girls are you talking about? Short time girls or long time girlfriends?

Did anyone see this on the news?

I saw some very uniform displays, hardly looked natural to me. Some of the flares had 'tails' a little like regular fireworks, they seemed to be fairly close, perhaps a small boat, I wonder.. The distant and coloured flares looked very much like tracer rounds, fired into the air. Methane gas? I don't think that travels upwards, hundreds of feet a second.

If you open a savings account with Bangkok Bank, you can opt to have a Visa debit card also. This allows you the option of withdrawing cash from ATM's here and abroad. It's as easy as Indo-Siam mentions. I opened an account a few months back with my Passport and Non 'o' Visa. I think the rules state you must have a Non o or B or whatever, but I know friends who have opened accounts with a 30 day stamp. The sub-branches in the likes of Tesco and Big C seem to be farang friendly.

Bangkok Bank

Admin edit: Corrected the bank URL /Admin

One thing I will say , and Im sure I will be blasted for this , is that the attire of the Foreigners at both the Main Immigration Office and on the border left a lot to be desired.

I've seen guys turn up at Pattaya Immigration with no shirt. Every visa run I do, there's the guys in old vests and tattered flipflops. Sure you can wear what you like, all I'd say is use some common sense when dealing with officials here. Looking like a vagrant won't help...

My last visa run, a couple of weeks ago saw one such character getting his passport checked. The rest of us, no problems.

Tunnocks Caramel Wafer biscuits...

Cereals like weetabix, shredded wheat and those square cereal things [ like the size of a postage stamp, checked pattern ]....

Decent T.V. To think, I thought it was bad back home. Now I see it was ok really

Anyone know when 'Gung-Ho' Bud returns to posting here?

Kinda flat mood about the place and so many questions going unanswered.

I found this at www.pattayatodays.com

Nice and easy to understand...

 What began      as a Thai government attempt to apprehend terrorists like Hambali, the Indonesian al-Qaida regional chief, has now turned into a serious assault on visa fraud as a whole.    Immigration police general Charnvut Varjrabhukka put it succinctly, “People in Thailand illegally will be dealt with strictly.    They could spend a long time in jail.”

There is no official figure for how many tourists and longer staying foreigners have been closely questioned about their visas at airports and border crossings, but the number certainly runs into hundreds.   However, not all these have been arrested but simply questioned in depth.   Several Bangkok based embassies have

issued warning notices that the only valid visa is one stamped in front of you by an immigration officer at the point of entry.

About fifty or so tourists have been arrested at Bangkok airport as they tried to leave the country.   David Fielding, a 25 year old Brit who had holidayed in Pattaya, said that he had been charged with hiring a third party to obtain a visa for him.   He broke down under questioning and admitted who his agent was.   He had been jailed, first in the airport holding cells and then in Bangkok special prison, for almost two weeks whilst he waited for the 150,000 baht bail money to arrive from his relatives.   He has been advised to hire strong legal representation as the penalties under the 1979 immigration act are potentially severe.   It could be months before his case is heard.

Recent reports claim that border posts are also checking exit documentation carefully after complaints from the prime minister.   Dozens have been arrested at Thai checkpoints at Nong Khai and along the Cambodian border. The majority of offenders appear to be from the Indian sub-continent, but twenty or so Europeans have been charged in recent days.  

There are three main subjects of trouble.   The first is where the visa is simply a fake.   In Pattaya for instance, there are places where Thai facilitators hang out, offering to obtain for you a new visa.  

Some of these fake visas are harder to spot than others, but they will almost certainly not have been logged into the Thai immigration system which is now on line at all air, land and sea exit points. The second area is to use an agent to obtain a genuine visa for you from overseas.   Some agents use couriers to take a batch of passports into Cambodia or Malaysia where local arrangers are on hand. Others may use private mail companies, such as DHL, to send customers’ passports to Europe for a genuine visa.   But the method of obtaining these is the problem.   A police check will quickly show such visitors have no applicable exit and entry stamp.

Finally, it is also illegal to send your own passport to a Thai consulate overseas to obtain a new visa.   It is certainly not illegal to apply for a visa by post and some consulates actually require you to do so.   But you are supposed to be in the foreign country at the time you apply.

Once you are refused exit from Thailand with a scam visa, you will not be allowed to use that passport again in this country, even for your return home.   On top of your other problems, you will need to obtain a new passport from the relevant embassy.  

If you are in doubt about your current visa, the official advice is to consult the immigration authorities locally and tell them the truth. A Pattaya police source said, “In immigration matters, it is always better to own up rather than be found out.”   Alternatively, if you have used an agency which is still operational, ask them first what they suggest you do.  

on a similar note...

I need shoe size 12 or 13 [ UK ]...

Not easy to find. Not a great deal of Thai's take that size  

Sorry, maybe not so clear in my post regarding what you get for your 2k Baht...

Included is the 1000B Visa fee and also the 100 Baht tip. These companies do almost everything for you, your only part is standing in the line.

When you deduct the 1000 fee for visa and the 100 baht tip, that works out at transport costs of 900 baht return. That's good enough just to sit and relax for sure.

BTW: No backpack in sight for me. Just a large wheeled suitcase  

If you're close to a bus station, there's service on the government coaches every 30 minutes, I think. From Pattaya to Bkk, they're at least every hour. That's a cheap way.

I think a couple of thousand baht may even get a private taxi to take you and bring you back. I can travel from Pattaya to the airport, then get returned to Pattaya for 1800 as I did last month after seeing my sister off.  I was far too drunk to drive myself